Many broadcast stations, such as radio broadcast stations, use computers running broadcast automation software, such as the NexGen Digital™ radio broadcast automation software provided by Prophet Systems Innovation, to automate some, if not all, of an entire broadcast. Broadcast content typically includes various media events such as songs, movies, advertisements, jingles, news spots, traffic, radio host commentary, interviews, station identification, segues, beds, promos, station identification, time and temperature, voice tracks and the like.
Generally, broadcast content is stored electronically in individual files, and is compiled into a broadcast program log or playlist that may include a chronological arrangement of various types of broadcast content to create the desired listening “experience.” For example, a playlist for a radio music program may include a series of songs with station identification and advertisements interspersed at various intervals.
Many broadcast stations are part of larger broadcast systems or networks that allow broadcast programs to be shared. For example, one broadcast station may host a live program, record that program, and transmit that program to another broadcast station for rebroadcast.
When networked broadcast stations share programming, content broadcast transmitted from one broadcast station may not be appropriate for another broadcast station. For example, a broadcast program may include songs, movies and/or advertisements pertinent to a particular audience and not to another audience. Or, a program from one broadcast station may be transmitted to multiple broadcast stations having diverse audiences, such as paid subscribers to an Internet-based broadcast, or to HD radio listeners, and certain content may be undesirable for that audience.
In some cases, a main station may broadcast songs that are streamed on a streaming station. In some such cases, it may be desirable to substitute different commercial content on the streaming station. Conventional methods of substituting commercial content generally require substituting content that has the same length as the replaced content. Except in very limited circumstances, these conventional techniques are not suitable for substituting non-commercial content, because of the length of different non-commercial content varies significantly from one item to the next. Some have attempted to get around the limitations of conventional techniques by employing a complete black out of content on a stream, or by simply not streaming at all. These techniques are less than optimal.